Aeternum
by ChibotleKentucky
Summary: Jesse's hearing voices. Romeo and Xara are on edge. Lukas is scared. Petra is missing. Radar can't seem to remember anything. the man in the white room finds this all hilarious. (Warning for Profanity, violence, self harm and mind control. Please review if you like)
1. Chapter 1

Jesse was bored.

21 years old and already feeling like he'd accomplished most of what he could in life. Defeated great evil, went on adventures, found innumerable treasure, achieved fame, etcetera.

Maybe he wasn't looking hard enough for something more? He should feel satisfied, but he felt restless.

Being the hero was extremely eventful, so when the story ends... What now?

Stretching (with a satisfying sound of popping muscles) he stood up from where had been sat at the end of his bed, dropping the book on minerals he had half-heartedly been reading. Glancing out the window at the mid-day sun, he debated whether it was worth going outside.

But he'd already whiled away the day half-through. Glass half empty, so far, but he should look at it more half-full. Right?

He grunted at his racing thoughts and stepped out of his room into the long corridors of his home. The place was... Spacious, but decidedly un-cozy. It was practically sterilised with how clean it was. He'd tried to assert his visual personality on it, but the white walls and white floor and shining windows refused to be tamed.

Picking up his sword from where it lay downtrodden on the sofa, lounging like he desperately wished to be but despite this knew he needed more, he stepped outside.

The glare of the sun was instantaneous, nearly blinding him, and as he blinked rapidly the shape was burnt into his vision. Shaking his head, squinting a little, he stepped into ingraved stone, slightly unsteady.

'So tired...'

"Hey, Jesse!"

He blinked and turned to see Romeo standing across the street, navy hoodie pulled up over his head despite the sweltering heat, arms full of dirt he was carrying, almost in a cradling stance to stop himself from spilling any. "You alright?"

"Ah.. Yeah. Just tired" Jesse sighed, rubbing the back of his neck as he walked over. "Err... Having fun?"

"Yeah" Romeo deadpanned. "Making building foundations is thrilling"

The hero chuckled nervously before idly watching as the redhead dumped the dirt next to a shallow slope, clearly the base of where wood would then be put to create scaffolding. Romeo packed it together to make it more firm before wiping sweat from his forehead. "Flipping Notch, not even half-day anymore and still this hot" the redhead chuckled. "I feel ready to pass out"

"Take the hoodie off then" Jesse snorted, before glancing about. "Hm. I want to find something to occupy myself with - i'd be lying if i said my brain wasn't starting to atrophy from all of this nothing"

"You fought me only 2 weeks ago, was that not enough excitement for you?" Romeo grinned, grabbing a shovel nearby to gather more dirt. "Seizure enducing flashes and ear-destroying noises not enough?"

"The witherstorm was worse" Jesse shrugged with a falsified air of indifference. Romeo scoffed, arching an eyebrow at him. "Sorry that my borderline homicidal hissy fit wasn't entertaining, then. And if you're really so bored why not get out of town for a bit? You're gonna go mad if you just waste away in that house"

Jesse groaned. "I already am, trust me. I know i sound like a total priveleged ass, but... With all the things that have happened, normalicy feels abnormal now."

"Talking to the king of all pomp, i assure you that you aren't being a 'priveleged ass', as you so eloquently put it" Romeo grinned, patting down more dirt onto the mound. "C'mon, get outta the walls. Forage a bit, mine, wander. Should help"

Jesse saluted sarcastically. "Aye-aye"

As he walked off he couldn't stop the small smile that curled his lips. He was glad he felt a little more comfortable talking to the ex-admin; the first week of him here had been slightly unsettling for Jesse and hard to adjust to.

He waved to some of the residents as he walked, the ever needed satiated wanderlust burning off his exhaustion on some level, his movements slowly becoming less sluggish.

For some reason, he felt like he was being watched as he stepped out of the gates.

Grip tightening on his sword he looked around warily, but saw nothing in the treeline. Eyes narrowing, he kept walking, now acutely aware of another prescence. He couldn't see or hear anyone, but he could feel it.

He spent a little longer walking, never relaxing his stance, knuckles whitening on the hilt of his sword.

"YO, JESSE!"

He yelped in shock at the sudden introduction of Lukas's voice, the blonde appearing from the treeline several meters away, a happy smile on his face.

He frowned a little. Lukas wasn't the prescence he had felt, he just knew it. But that feeling was gone.

Oh well. He pushed the paranoia away and waved at the man rapidly approaching. "Hello, Lukas. What are you doing out here?"

Lukas smirked. "Just got bored so i decided to go for a little trek. How about you?"

"Same" Jesse chuckled sheepishly, linking their arms easily. "I missed you, man."

Lukas snorted, noogying him. "What? We just had an adventure, man! Got attachment issues?"

Jesse rolled his eyes, expression becoming dry. "Am i gonna get this from everyone? I can't help being lonely or bored!"

Lukas smiled. "Guess not. For what it's worth, good to see you too, man"

And for a while they just walked and talked. Catching up.

Until the sun began to descend in the sky. And the creeping sensation occured again, the hairs on the back of Jesse's neck straightening as if he had just recieved a minor static shock.

Scowling as he noticed zombies spawning, he and Lukas began to sprint back to town, him occasionally fighting off a mob that got a little too close.

"Exciting enough for you?" Lukas panted with a slight chuckle. Jesse reisted the urge to flip him off.

As he caught his reflection in his blade, a strange thought crossed him.

'Run yourself through'

"W-what?!" he snapped in confusion, stumbling a little. Lukas shot him an odd look. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm-" Jesse hissed, before his knees buckled a little.

'Meet me. Run yourself through'

'You're bored, right? I can fix that'

'I know the empty feeling you experience. Want help?'

"-se? JESSE!"

Jesse was snapped back into reality to find himself on his knees with Lukas kneeling in front of him, pale as a sheet as mobs moved in less than a meter away. Jesse's hands tightly gripped his sword, now pointed at his stomach, pressing against the material of his shirt.

Eyes widening in bewildered fear but knowing not to linger on things in moments of danger, he leapt up, his friend along with, and they continued their way back, Lukas shooting him several concerned askance looks.

They passed the gate just as the moon began to approach the top of the sky, and Lukas slammed the wood shut before turning to frown at his slightly disoriented friend. "Dude, what the hell? You spaced out and you looked like you were about to gore yourself!"

Jesse shuddered at the description. "I... Don't know. I lost awareness for a moment. I think I'm just tired. Sorry, I'll go to sleep" he began to walk back to his house, movements delayed and tired.

"Wait! But-?!" Lukas reached after him but when Jesse made no indication of stopping his departure, his arm dropped back to his side.

Somewhere in the space between relaties, a man chuckled.

.

.

Romeo looked up from where he leant against the wall in an alley. The moon shone down.

'It's been a while'

He scowled.

"Get the hell out of my head before i kill the both of us."

Silence for a moment. Then...

'You should listen to me. You're nothing without me'

"I don't give a damn, frankly." he responded, tone flat and disinterested.

No reply.

Shaking his head with irritation and fear thrumming through him, he closed his eyes and tried to ignore the sting of cold as he fell asleep.

.

.

Xara frowned. She could feel it.

'It's been years since we last encountered one another'

Well. That confirmed it. She scowled.

"I don't understand why you even bother. I'm not going to be your backup pawn."

No response.

"Don't try this with Romeo, or Jesse, or frankly fucking anyone" she continued. "Because you know i will not hesitate to grind a sword through your stupid fucking eye sockets"

The silence dragged out.

"Glad you can hear me at least. Now piss off"

.

.

Jesse awoke the next morning equally tired and restless. Sighing and pushing himself out the door, he paused with confusion at Romeo and Xara on the path. Calmly... Talking to each other. And not killing each other.

...uh.

"Uh... Hey, guys?" he called hesitantly, raising a hand to wave. Almost immediately they jolted, serious expressions wiping off to ones of surprise as they turned to him. Xara's expression morphed to one of irritation while Romeo just looked sheepish. Jesse frowned. "Is something wrong?"

Romeo gave Xara an odd look, one that seemed to annoy her, before walking up to Jesse and staring... Rather hard at him. He leaned in until their noses nearly touched and Jesse leaned back, cheeks turning crimson. "Woah, the hell? Personal space!"

Romeo snorted, expression lightening. "Nothing there" he called dryly back go Xara. "Why would it even be Jesse?"

Xara scowled. "Ooh, hero of the world multiple times, directly involved with us, looks like him? Gee, i wonder why i would suspect Jesse"

Romeo glared. "Did i fit any of that criteria?"

"I doubt he'll make Jesse an admin, that wasn't my point!" she snapped. His expression grew more taut.

"Oh, but you suspect him so easily?"

"Like you're one to talk!"

"GUYS!" Jesse snapped, glaring. The passers-by turned to stare. His green eyes burned. "Can you please just explain what the hell is going on?!"

"I..." Xara sighed. "Let's go inside first. C'mon"

She walked past him briskly, snapping his door lock like it was made of paper (he made several incomprehesive noises at that) and walked straight into his house.

Romeo snorted at Jesse's look of incredulity, clapping him on the shoulder, before following Xara. After sputtering for a bit Jesse went in after, sending a passing miserable look to his broken lock.

She slammed the door and folded her arms before exhaling slowly. "Jesse, have you heard any voices?"

The brunette's eyes widened. "W- what?!"

"Voices. Like you're thinking but it's not actually you" Romeo elaborated. Jesse bit his lip.

"Yeah. Do you have it? What is it?" he admitted. Xara's eyes widened before narrowing. Romeo seemed to tense, also frowning.

"Have you moved without meaning to?" Xara's voice became more urgent. Jesse began to feel unsettled. "Back in the woods yesterday, i kept hearing a voice telling me to run myself through with my sword. I felt like i was dissociating or something, and when i snapped out of it i was pointing my sword at myself" he finally said. Xara growled, looking slightly scared now. It was an odd expression on her. "Fuck."

He clutched at his arm, shuffling a little. He felt like a teenager again, completely lost on everything. "Are you going to explain?! Clearly it's important if you two can talk to each other without one of you lashing out and needing the hospital afterward, but you aren't actually being clear!"

Romeo at least had the grace to look a little guilty after this outburst, sighing. "I... Sorry. To summarise, there's a malevolent entity in your head right now. Not residing there or anything, but having access. And you're going to have to be careful to not give it leeway to control you anymore" he paused. "Sorry, that was too much at once."

Jesse's brow furrowed. "That just raises even more questions. What entity? And how am i meant to stop it? And... How do you know about it?"

Xara paused for a moment before looking pointedly at Romeo. "You tell him"

Romeo scowled immediately, looking affronted. "What the hell? I know what you're getting at; I'm not going to show him it!"

"Why not?" she smirked nastily. "You did it."

Something dark appeared in his expression. Jesse quickly stepped between them to quell a potential fight. "Woah. You two, calm down."

Romeo looked ready to explode but took in some steadying breaths. Xara rolled her eyes but calmed herself a little too, closing her eyes.

"Jesse"

He looked to her.

"Have you ever heard the legend of Herobrine?"


	2. Chapter 2

"O-of course i have!" Jesse's eyes widened. "It's one of the most famous myths! Is... Wait, is this going to lead up to some revelation that it actually happened?!"

Romeo smiled, though it was a little fake. "I'm afraid so. Do you know _everything_ about that myth?"

Jesse shrugged. "No clue. You might need to give a refresher"

"Very well"

.

.

(1500 years ago)

.

.

Once apon a time, there had only been 4 humans on the earth. Back when every stretch of the ground was dangerous, mountains towered beyond even human comprehension, and when homes were carved from dirt and clay.

These humans were later to be revered as Gods, then as Legends, then merely as myths. Speculation.

The first of them was Notch. His origins unknown, but known to have created the other 3 and then the rest of the startings of mankind, the first hundred. More commonly referred to as the Primis.

Notch first created Steve - a man later to fade into obscurity, Alex - a woman whose death was wrapped in mystery and whose existence was sometimes doubted, and Herobrine - who vanished partway through the scriptures documenting the ancient being's lives.

Primitive townsfolk enjoyed creating structures and writings to them, and what they could defer was that Herobrine was an accident of sorts. Not meaning to have been made. He was a glitch off of Steve, a mess up in the creation process. He looked identical, though with no sclera or pupils, unlike Steve's apparent silver-blue eyes.

Herobrine was described as... Off-kilter. A lot.

At one time he might be reasonable and calm, even thought to have had a relationship with Alex, and at other times, scorched transcripts depicted how he would fly into a rage, singeing forests with unexplainable bursts of white energy, scourging the land, and sometimes people along with.

One particular text was written in a childish scrawl, detailing how a little girl had found Herobrine at one time seeming to be breaking down, body glitching, canines poking from his mouth, white streaking from his eyes. His head had snapped up to her prescence, and she wrote that she had feared for her life. But he had simply stared at her and began to tear at himself, growling.

Even Notch could barely comprehend what was wrong with the man. And whenever he tried to speak to him, the other cussed him out quite severely. Their relationship was tumultuous at the best of times.

But even as Herobrine was speculated, all knew of how he vanished.

After his murder of Alex and Steve, and nearly Notch along with, before fleeing to never be seen again.

No one to this day knew why. He never displayed a hatred for Steve, and was thought to have been in a relationship with Alex. So why?

Notch was able to revive Steve, though the man vanished soon after, only to be caught in glimpses. Notch was unable to revive Alex however, as enough of Herobrine's trace was left in her that her body couldn't be interacted with without giving the interacter intense agony. Notch eventually faded too, thought to have died in solomn grief of his friend's fates.

.

.

"I think i can catch the implications of you bringing up this myth. Is the daemon in my head...?"

"Yes."

He felt his face drain of all colour. "What should i do?"

"Primarily you should try to remain as focussed throughout the days as possible" Xara chimed in. "Don't zone out, or daydream, or anything like that. And if you start to hear his voice, tell someone immediately"

"And" Romeo cut in, expression rather profoundly serious. "Do not harm yourself, intentionally or not. Under any circumstances"

Jesse frowned. "What?"

Xara sighed, giving Romeo a look that seemed vaguely sardonic. "He can easier posses you or manipulate you if your mind is clouded by pain or if you're in a state of emotional distress - it's why he wanted you to stab yourself yesterday. Romeo is at most technical risk but you're probably the biggest target right now."

Jesse's brow furrowed. "Why?"

"'Why' which part?" she snorted.

"Uh. Both honestly."

"Romeo is more at risk because he's a nut who likes pain" she sent him a catty grin which he returned with a glare. She rolled her eyes before continuing. "You're probably his biggest target due to your whole... Thing. Hero of the world, yeah?"

Jesse groaned. "Never have i hated that title so much until now"

"Don't blame you."

"So... You two must have interacted with him before to know so much, correct?" Jesse questioned. Romeo sighed. "Yes. I assume you want to know that story too?"

"If... You're willing to share"

"I suppose it's only fair to, considering you're now involved"

.

.

(110 years ago)

.

.

Romeo, 14, slowly opened his eyes to blinding white.

He groaned and sat up, feeling extremely lethargic, confused. "Where... Where am i?" he managed, throat sore as he shakily stood up. "Xara? Fred?" his eyes scanned his surroundings, but there was just pure blinding white on all sides. Even whatever he was stood on was intangible white.

He moved his arm to shield his eyes so he wouldn't be forced to squint, but winced and flinched violently as a shock of agony streaked his body at the movement. Frowning, he looked down at his arm, and paled.

Strings of dirty bandages were haphazardly wrapped around a partially concealed cut, that appeared rather fresh, and vertically spanned from his wrist to an inch below his elbow, jagged. The blood was leaking through the bandages and had congealed, sticking it to his arm.

Grimacing in disgust and finding it hard to remember how he was injured, he picked at the bandages.

"I wouldn't do that if i were you. That cloth is the only thing keeping you alive, since you're rapidly losing blood in reality and that strip is the sole contributor to you surviving even this long" a voice rang out.

Romeo turned around, and his eyes widened.

A man stood before him, brown hair messy and clumped with blood and dirt and grime, with an equally dirty cyan shirt and deep blue trousers, both of which looked badly dyed. He was barefoot, feet covered in scars, and as Romeo looked harder he realised the man was coated with scars, most predominantly on his arms and neck.

Then the man smiled, and Romeo shuddered. His teeth were sharpened, most prominantly his canines. His blanked out eyes started to stream white, merging with the surroundings.

"Hello. I don't believe we've been acquainted."

The redhead shuddered. He felt a creeping sense of dread. Despite this, he replied.

"Erm... Where are we? And what happened to my arm?" he asked awkwardly. The man's smirk widened.

"Oh, you don't remember? Then i have the pleasure of enlightening you"

The younger backed up a little. The man continued, voice cruel.

"I'm afraid I've caught you in the midst of a rather gorey episode of self mutilation. Convenient for me; not so much for you"

Romeo felt like the air had just been knocked from his lungs. He stared down at his arm in horror, ashen. "W-what?! Why the hell would i do this to myself? And... Why can't i remember?!"

"Do you think i know your psyche more than you do?" the man looked vaguely irritated at the first question. "As for your memory, i suppose since we're caught between soul and body your mind just can't function properly. Being a deity doesn't make me omnipotent, I'm afraid"

"A-a deity?!"

Suddenly Romeo felt a sensation grip his throat, and felt as if the air was being pushed from him. He gagged, clutching at his neck, and the man scowled. "Shut up and listen"

He paused then released the choking sensation on the boy's throat, leaving him to take in several desperate breaths.

"My time is limited before your real body dies. You caused quite fatal damage to yourself. So I'm here to make an offer"

Romeo listened, eyes wide, clutching his arm, twitching at the occasional dulled shocks of pain it sent him.

"I can save you, as well as heal all the damage you've done to yourself. I can also save you from your wretched life - your friends too. I can give you three anything from your wildest dreams"

Romeo narrowed his eyes at the intoxicating offer. It was tempting. Far too good to be true. "What in return?"

"Well, I'm almost entirely stuck in this realm. In fact, i haven't seen the real world in over a thousand years" the man smirked. "Simply allow me access to your body. Some occasional control over you. Nothing too steep"

The redhead stared at him in bewilderment. "You want... Mind control?! Wait... A thousand years?! Who are you?"

"Irrelevant" he waved his hand. "You have about 2 minutes before you die. Do you accept? Your girlfriend is currently sobbing over your body, if that hurries you up a little"

"She's not my girlfriend! And i need to know more before i-!"

"Tick tock"

"I just don't-"

"Tick tock"

"I-"

"Tick t-"

Romeo's hand latched onto the olders' before he could stop himself. Ripping pain tore through him like molten iron from his cut but he ignored it. There was a fierce and intense feeling blooming in his hand where he was holding Herobrine's, as if he were being burned but couldn't feel the pain from it. "Fine! I accept!"

Romeo's eyes closed blue and opened crimson and gold.

.

.

Xara sighed, shaking her head before looking at Jesse. "Have you ever wondered why, after losing his admin powers, he stopped being such a lunatic almost instantly?"

"Err..."

"Because he was being influenced as an admin" she sighed, frowning. "Not that that makes him exempt from punishment - he still very much did what he did. But there was someone affecting his subconscious - driving him more firmly. Someone putting those ideas in his head in the first place. And when you drained his powers from him, that control broke"

Jesse's eyes widened. "So... Admins are made from Herobrine's power? And... Controlled by him?"

"In essence. Xara and Fred were never truly effected though" Romeo sighed, shaking his head to try and remove the memories. "I played right into his hands at every turn. Like an idiot"

"Mm. Not to mention you got yourself into that disaster by carving yourself up" Xara scowled. Romeo's expression almost immediately slipped into anger again, and Jesse chipped in hurriedly. "W-Well, look, me just staying aware and out of harms way? That's not that hard! I'm sure things will be fine! And you two - stop trying to rile each other up, please!"

Xara scoffed, turning and walking out without another word. Romeo watched her go before sighing. "She really does hate me. Not that i blame her"

"I'm sure you two will make up eventually?" Jesse shrugged. "And... I need to make sure of something"

Romeo shot him a curious look. "What is it?"

"Xara said you're 'a nut who likes pain'... Does she mean in the past or are you currently like that, too? Because we'll need to be aware of you if that makes you a bigger target" Jesse said hesitantly. Romeo sighed and dragged a hand down his face. "Firstly, for the record, i don't like pain. Secondly, i promise i won't be a bigger burden on your paranoid psyche than i already am. Don't worry about it, he wouldn't be after me anymore anyway"

Jesse frowned. "But-"

"Crap, i just realised, i should be helping out with the building. See you later, Jesse" and then Romeo was waving and already halfway out the door, and Jesse let his protestations die on his tongue.

"I have to avoid losing concentration or pain" he softly reaffirmed to himself before shaking his head. "Damn. For anyone else that would be simple. But for mr. hero it's going to be a challenge. Especially considering i seem to attract danger. Crap" he ran his fingers through his hair before shaking his head and stepping outside.

.

.

Petra sighed at the trader. "Man, 3 gold ingots for one enchantment tome? Really?"

"Miss, i have to make a living" the man frowned at her. "Now, are you going to buy?"

She paused but nodded. "Guess i am. Here." she fished the required payment from her pocket, passing it and receiving the tome. Stepping to the anvil, she placed Mrs. Butter 2.0 onto it before softly reading off the tome's contents.

It's pages disintegrated as she read, and soon it was merely a pile of dust. Glowing runes flashed on her sword before vanishing, and she blew off the dust before picking the sword up, running her finger along the edge. It came away bloody, a small cut now present.

"Damn. Sharpness III is great" she grinned, stepping away before slashing at a tree.

The effect was instant. Her sword carved through the first layer of bark like paper, severing it cleanly several centimeters through.

She gawked at it before letting out a triumphant guffaw and waving it above her hand. "Now THAT'S the stuff!"

"Yeah, that's pretty good. Not as good as the guy i saw yesterday, though" the man mused aloud from behind her. "Sliced a boulder in half like it was nothing. Was insane"

Her eyes widened. "A BOULDER?"

"Yeah, crazy, right? His sword was diamond, covered in all these crazy runes like he'd layered millions of enchantments atop one another"

She grinned. "Sounds cool as hell, do you know where he went?"

"The mountains East of here, i believe?"

She smirked.

"Time to start another mini adventure then, i suppose"

.

.

The man with silver-like eyes sighed, sat on the very edge, over looking the world. If he squinted, he could see for miles.

He glanced down at his sword and picked it up, pressing it extremely gently against his hand. It immediately sliced through several milimeters, and he winced, removing it.

Tucking it into his inventory, he stood up, eyes once again scanning the surroundings before sighing.

"It's at times like this that i miss you the most" he breathed, and shook his head as tears rose. He didn't even know he could cry anymore. It felt like an age since he had shown even any emotion.

Then an odd sensation overtook him, like a heatwave. It washed over him and left him staggering.

"What?!" his eyes widened and hid brows pulled together slightly before he closed his eyes and focussed.

"Мен билем... бул... ?!"

He could sense it in his mind. The swaths of white amongst the black.

He jumped off the mountain without a second thought, wind whipping his short brown hair, flinging himself at a lower outcrop of another mountain neighbouring his one, and dug his sword into the side of it. The momentum carved the stone like butter and continued to slide down through the stone with ease, him holding onto the handle as he descended.

"I won't let you hurt anybody this time. This time, I'll stop you"


	3. Chapter 3

(Over 1000 years ago)

Herobrine, 25, was struggling.

'No magic' Notch had insisted, but without magic, how was he expected to get this tree trunk over?!

He shook his head, irritated, deciding 'screw it' and charging his fingers with energy. Almost immediately the entire tree he had over his shoulder felt light as a feather as he stumbled back to their home.

Deep in jungle forests, among high trees, their home was large and imposing, made of almost every type of wood imaginable, both raw and planked. Cobble foundations stopped it from being blown down by the endless squall of wintery autumn.

He dumped it among piles of wet leaves and mud that stuck to his feet no matter how many times he washed them or stopped in his treks to swipe them against flat stone. It was akin to an adhesive.

He noticed after a moment his ankles were bleeding, evidently he had brushed past some nettles, and as he bent down to press white-luminescence against them to stitch the flesh wounds back together, he heard the front door open, also made of fracturing wood.

"Oh, Brine. Back so soon?" Alex blinked, staring at him. "I thought Notch said no powers; you can't have been _that_ fast"

Herobrine scoffed, standing back up straight. "And i suppose that lunatic expected me to tug bleeding 600 pounds of wood back to the house? He can jump off a ledge"

"Brine!" she repimanded, but her lips quirked, a clear signifier that she was amused. "He's gonna be annoyed, he wants you less dependant on that 'glowy white gunk'"

Herobrine just shrugged, unapologetic. "He's awful upset about me having powers for a guy that can literally bring back the dead and create life. Hell, not even i can do that" he noticed a slight smile curling on her face and pulled her closer to him. She let out a slight yelp but cuddled into his side easily enough as he stepped inside.

"...We should really fix the floor" he commented after a moment, staring pointedly at the broken, misplaced and otherwise unsightly floorplanks. Alex nodded, head resting on his shoulder. "Agreed. Steve is always too tired from building to do so though, and Notch is always busy..."

"...Ruling the known world" Herobrine finished, dropping his sword onto the floor with a clang. He really didn't enjoy how it pressed against his leg when he used rope to keep it at his side. However, it being diamond and thus stronger than the floor, this action only served to fracture the floor yet further.

He turned to her. "We could collaboratively do it at some point, if you're ever so inclined"

She pulled her head back and smiled. "Of course"

At her smile something in his chest pounded, heart palpitating, but this response from his body seemed to agitate his power. Head buzzing, he clutched at it, suddenly desperate to see blood. He clawed violently only for a sharp pain to strike him, focusing back to sanity to find himself sprawling on the floor, bleeding from the eyes with Alex stood over him with a raised hand and a truly fearful look on her face.

He had wanted to comfort her; to assure her that it was simply a momentary lapse in concentration. His power overtook him. Minor. Unimportant.

But he couldn't bring himself to lie to her.

These episodes were getting worse and worse.

.

.

(Current Time)

.

.

"Something in the air feels different" Radar idly commented, staring through his gelled fringe up at the sky. A girl next to him smiled, carrying a large stack of firewood. "I felt that too, do you think the seasons are changing?"

He turned to her. "I doubt it, this would be over a month early. Oh well..." he rolled his shoulders. "I doubt it's anything worrying"

She looked unbothered and simply continued on her way, but he dwelled on her words. So it _wasn't_ just him feeling this!

He somewhat wished he could discuss it with Jesse, but the brunette hero had become ever more reclusive as of late, almost feeling unnaproachable.

Radar remembered the Jesse who helped him through the ice palace, who defended him from Stella, who entertained his nonsense in the sunshine institute...

And now thought of the current Jesse. The introverted, anti-social, cautious and paranoid man who had turned him awkwardly away at his door.

He felt rather like crying.

.

.

Stella sighed as she strolled the semi-fixed streets of Champion city. The polished marble was still somewhat cracked, and the walls somewhat charred, but ignoring that it almost looked it's former glory - from before the Admin decided to snap his fingers and sic lightning on it.

Some people had to be kept on bed rest for several days or hooked to an iv from their burn or shock injuries, but thankfully no one was permanantly scarred or killed.

She had remembered a mere 2 days after the Admin had been brought down, he - Romeo - had hammered on her door, looking fearful. She had scowled and nearly shut the door on him, only to pause as he desperately poured out an apology that tore the breath from his throat, unable to breath for several seconds after, seeming nigh feverish. Then he had asked, with a wretched tone (and face showing any kind of hope steadily ebbing out at her flat expression) as he desperately managed to blurt out _"Did anyone die?!"_

She had been stunned. And all she could make out in response was a bewildered "...Huh?"

He repeated his enquiry, now looking ready to throw himself off a bridge. She noticed the heavy purple beneath his eyes, indicating insomnia, and the way he seemed to curl in on himself. All of his confidence as an Admin had been completely stripped.

'...The hell happened between him and Jesse?'

She kept her voice dry of any warmth as she responded with a tart "No. Nobody died" and the way his face crumpled with insurmountable relief floored her. Was this even the same man that had psuedo-kidnapped her a fortnight ago?

Then she looked about, saw the way the citizens within vicinity glared at him, saw the murderous intent in their eyes, and pulled him in before he could protest.

Talking was awkward, but necessary. Though after this talk she hadn't seen him since.

Hmm...

.

.

Xara glanced at Romeo as he helped with the rebuilding, and couldn't help but wince for him when a villager 'accidentally' bumped into him, sending him to the floor. She hated him, yes, but her vindictiveness was mostly resricted to comments. She didn't see the pleasure in harming someone just for kicks. That was just lowering you to their level.

And Romeo. That moron was still wearing a hoodie in this heat. She wondered idly if he was hiding his old scar from when he met Herobrine (it was admittedly rather hideous) or if he had something newer.

She shook her head firmly. She shouldn't care. Couldn't. _Didn't._

She watched silently as he laughed off the sarcastic and loaded apology the villager gave him, expression nervous, sweeping up the dirt and packing it in, seemingly not caring that he was on his hands and knees doing so until he stood up again.

A passerby shot him a scowl.

His nails dug into his palm.

"At this rate" she muttered "They'll kill him before Herobrine even has the chance to"

.

.

Harper paused, flint in hand, hovering over the small stack of firewood. Ivor blinked at her. "Harper, are you going to...?"

"Ah. Yes" she snapped out of her seemingly meaningless lapse in concentration, setting the wood ablaze before tucking the flint back into her pocket. He set up a spit-roast with a pig and they sat on a log beside it. Ivor looked up at the stars.

"I imagine it's daytime for Jesse and the others. Worlds are strange" he murmered, before smiling at her. "I don't miss them as much as i thought i would - camping is rather enjoyable"

She smiled slightly at him. "Do i contribute to that enjoyment?"

His face went crimson. "O-of course!"

She laid her head on his shoulders. He was so cute when flustered.

But even in such a peaceful environment, she still felt unsettled by how she had zoned out before. She didn't know why.

They fell asleep in front of the fire.

.

.

Jesse had wanted to avoid pain. He really had.

But he had popped into the mines (awkwardly greeing Radar, who seemed more upset than usual) had picked up a pickaxe and stepped down...

To promptly trip and skin his knee.

He had hissed, eyes narrowed, clutching the torn skin, and that was all it took for the voice to flood him again.

'Jesse...'

"No!" he growled, standing up, walking forward with a limp. "No. You won't ruin my day. And i won't give into you, Herobrine. Stay away from my head"

A pause.

'You'll cave in eventually'

"Let's wait and see" he growled, eyes flashing. "Until then, back off"

There wasn't a response, so he just went into mining as he had planned.

In a reflective stone, he saw his eyes flicker white.

He paled and told himself it was a trick of the light.


End file.
